There is a myth that Christianity is responsible for ecological destruction: by placing Man at the center of creation, by claiming dominion for him over the rest of the visible world, the Church has opened the door to widespread devastation of the environment.

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But Christianity does not say that man can do whatever he wants to the environment, to other creatures. He is only a steward, and will be held accountable to God for his works. The world was not given for us to abuse or destroy, but to tend and nurture. The cosmos is alive with the glory of God, and the Christian teaching is that we should regard it with awe and wonder, and show reverence for all of life.

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The view that we may treat the world as a machine, to exploit to our own ends, is a product of the "Enlightenment" and the Industrial age, not of Christianity, and is ultimately self-destructive.

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==Orthodox Books==

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==Other helpful articles==

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[[Category:Ethics]]

[[Category:Ethics]]

Revision as of 02:21, January 30, 2005

There is a myth that Christianity is responsible for ecological destruction: by placing Man at the center of creation, by claiming dominion for him over the rest of the visible world, the Church has opened the door to widespread devastation of the environment.

But Christianity does not say that man can do whatever he wants to the environment, to other creatures. He is only a steward, and will be held accountable to God for his works. The world was not given for us to abuse or destroy, but to tend and nurture. The cosmos is alive with the glory of God, and the Christian teaching is that we should regard it with awe and wonder, and show reverence for all of life.

The view that we may treat the world as a machine, to exploit to our own ends, is a product of the "Enlightenment" and the Industrial age, not of Christianity, and is ultimately self-destructive.